3rd Injection

I am amazed and overwhelmed by the kindness of people. Today I went in for my third steroid injection. Needless to say, I wasn't thrilled. I told my doctor about the bleeding and pain from the last injection. He said the bleeding can happen at times and to just place a cool cloth in between my knees and close them. He also said the pain levels can alter from shot to shot. As long as I wasn't generally worse, it is still too soon to tell.

We went ahead with the two needles. I had a new audience today- another graduate student. I always wonder what's on their minds when they see me. Like I said previously, I don't care how many people are in the room anymore- I've been put in the limelight so much that it doesn't matter. And, if this helps someone learn more about vulvar vestibulitis, then more people can be treated properly and maybe a cure can finally be found.

I was still in a little bit of pain from the last injection, so this week's wasn't particularly fun. I just closed my eyes and clenched my hands together trying to focus on breathing and my knees. Right in the middle of the first needle, the nurse came right up to me and grabbed my hand and told me to squeeze as tight as I could. She had talked to me in the room during the beginning of the exam and was actually interested in my life. She said she was so proud of me for climbing Kilimanjaro. She actually treated me like a human being. Then, her simple act of coming over to help me through just gave me tremendous strength. I thank her dearly for her kindness.

I waited longer than usual in the room to make sure I didn't bleed after I left the hospital. Then I slowly walked back and took the train home. I was in a lot of pain for about an hour after the needles. It was a stabbing and sometimes burning pain that came in waves. I found it was better to just lie down and take the hits as they came. When they were over, I was just in a state of soreness. I definitely needed my cushion to sit down or I just tried to avoid sitting altogether.

Next week I should start to see if these are even working. As crazy as it sounds, I'd rather just keep continuing with the shots each week- they make me feel like I'm doing something and gives me a schedule to follow. If I'm told next week that they aren't working, then I'll be lost. I'll only have one option left.

But right now I'm just going to keep on moving. My tennis season is coming up and I want to start training for mountain climbing. My goal is to summit the 7 peaks- the 7 tallest points on ever continent. I already have one down. The next would would be Elbrus in Moscow. I think mountain climbing will give me something else to focus on and prove to myself I'm healthy and not limited in what I can accomplish.